Announcement on plans to rebuild Joplin mosque closer

There will be an announcement in a month or so about plans to rebuild the Islamic Society of Joplin mosque, according to a member of the mosque.

Mateen Nagaria made the remarks Saturday during an interfaith panel discussion at First Community Church. He is a member of the team planning the mosque rebuilding.

"We should be in the next few months starting the process of rebuilding," Nagaria said.

The mosque was destroyed in a suspicious fire last Aug. 6. ...

The FBI and ATF have offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the July 4 arson. Because authorities can't pinpoint the cause of the Aug. 6 fire, they can't say with certainty that a crime was committed.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations has offered an additional $10,000 reward for the arrest of those responsible for either fire. ...

Ibrahim Hooper, CAIR spokesman, said he didn't have any statistics, but he thinks the FBI's track record in investigating mosque fires is usually pretty good. He mentioned a recent mosque arson in Toledo, Ohio, that was solved with a conviction. He said he was troubled by the lack of information from the FBI in the Joplin case.

"Obviously, this was one of the most significant incidents targeting the Muslim community in recent years," Hooper said.

Nagaria said that even considering the destruction of the mosque, he has never felt hate from the people of this country. He said people of all faiths have always treated him with kindness. (Read the full article)

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